The present invention is directed to a method of graphically displaying data. More particularly, the present invention is directed to a method of graphically displaying multiple sets of data in the same geometric figure with the multiple sets being clearly delineated, such as debit and credit data sets, to enable the full financial picture to be concisely depicted.
With the recent proliferation of information, new ways to display that information in data sets are needed. The method of the present invention permits the visual display of multiple (two or more) sets of data as a geometric figure, the method comprising depicting at least one first value of a first variable as a first core circle of a first size; depicting at least one second value of a second variable as a first annulus of a second size surrounding said first core circle, a ratio of said second size of the first annulus to the first size of said first circle being equal to a value selected from i) a ratio of a second area of the first annulus to an area of the core circle, and ii) a ratio of an outer diameter of the first annulus to an outer diameter of the core circle.
The method further comprises depicting a value of at least a third variable, that depiction being selected from a group consisting of a segment of the first core circle, a segment of the first annulus, and a second independent annulus outside the first annulus, depending on whether the third variable is a) more closely related to the first variable, b) more closely related to the second variable, or c) is an independent, stand alone variable, respectively. The third variable can be a stand alone variable with a difference in inner diameters of said first and second annuluses representing a differential in values represented by said two annuluses. For example, a first one of the first and second annuluses can represent revenue and a second one of said first and second annuluses can represent expenses with the differential representing net income/loss. The method further contemplates stacking a series of the geometric figures and smoothing an outer surface formed thereby to form a three dimensional representation of the depicted values, each slice of the three dimensional representation delineating a snapshot in time of the depicted values.
Various other features, advantages and characteristics of the present invention will become apparent after a reading of the following detailed description.